Skip to main content

Smallswords

Scope note

Light civilian swords with a moderately long blade, a small guard with one or two shells, and arms of the hilt. Developed in the early 17th century, they became a standard part of gentlemen's fashionable dress until the late 18th century, surviving into the 20th century as part of court or ceremonial dress.

Term type

AAT

Getty AAT term number

300037091

Broader Terms used

<swords by form>

Equivalent Terms used

smallsword

Created

13yrs ago

Citation for print

This page can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "Terminology definition for: smallswords" Web page available at: https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/terminology/term-87098 Accessed: 2024-11-15 05:21:36

Citation for Wikipedia

To cite this page on Wikipedia you can use this code snippet:

{{cite web|url=https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/terminology/term-87098|title=Terminology definition for: smallswords|author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-11-15 05:21:36|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

API call for this record

To call these data via our API (remember this needs to be authenticated) you can use this code snippet:

https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/api/v1/terminology/term-87098

Sign up for updates

Updates about future exhibitions and displays, family activities, virtual events & news. You'll be the first to know...